This invention relates in general to distributor mechanisms for transferring material from one location to one of a plurality of remote locations and in particular to grain distributors of the type frequently used with bucket elevators.
The transfer of particulate material from a delivery location to a selected remote use or storage location involves the need to couple a conduit or similar device between the two locations and some means to move this conduit to different ones of the remote locations. One example of particulate material is grain and transfer of grain often involves a bucket elevator.
Bucket elevators for grain frequently employ a pick-up location near the base of a vertical column and a discharge location near the top of this vertical column. The vertical column includes an enclosed pair of chutes through which the grain cups (buckets) and their conveyor belt travel. Pulley arrangements are located at each end for establishing a continuous loop of travel. The velocity of this conveyor results in a flinging action of the grain from the cups as these cups pass over the top pulley and begin their downward travel. The grain discharged from the cups is directed into a funnel-shaped discharging fitting and from this location the grain flows into a grain distributor.
Grain distributors are employed in order to control the delivery of grain from the elevator to selected ones of various remote locations such as to bins and dryers. These types of distributors typically include a manifold plate which has a series of apertures and for each aperture there is an individual flow spout coupling a corresponding one of these apertures to a different bin or dryer. Within the distributor is a inner spout which provides flow communication for the grain from the discharging fitting to one of the selected apertures. Consequently, in order to terminate the delivery of grain from one bin or dryer and initiate grain delivery into a different bin or dryer, it is required to disconnect the inner spout from one aperture and reposition this inner spout over a different aperture. This task of raising, rotating and lowering the inner spout presents a significant challenge for elevator operators and has presented such a challenge for quite some time now.
One significant concern with the foregoing style of equipment is how to center the inner spout over a different aperture so that the grain does not spill out into the distributor housing. Since the distributor is typically remote from the operator, for example, it may be located over 100 to 150 feet above ground level, it is quite awkward for the operator to visually ascertain when proper alignment has been achieved. Another important concern with such equipment is the degree of physical exertion required to raise the inner spout and rotate it to an aligned location over a different aperture. In the past, systems have incorporated a pair of chains or ropes and one of these was manipulated by the equipment operator in order to raise the inner spout and the other was utilized in order to rotate this inner spout. However, the weight and dimensions of the inner spout which is involved, especially with large capacity distributors, necessitates considerable manual force in order to lift the entire spout.
One possible solution to the foregoing problem of requiring considerable manual force is afforded by U.S. Pat. No. 4,159,053 issued June 26, 1979 to Edmund P. Taylor and assigned to the assignee of the present invention. This patent discloses an inner spout with a large upper section and a relatively smaller and lighter lower section which is vertically movable relative to the upper section. This arrangement eliminates the necessity of having to apply excessively large manual force to lift the inner spout because it is only necessary to lift the lighter and smaller lower section in order to lift the spout out of a connected orientation with a first aperture. Thereafter, the entire spout assembly may be rotated to the next aperture and the spout lowered.
The arrangement of U.S. Pat. No. 4,159,053 still involves the use of a vertical lifting cable and a separate cable for rotating the inner spout once it has been lifted out of its connected position to the first aperture. These cables must still be manipulated by the operator and while the problem of weight and physical force have been minimized, this disclosed arrangement has its own disadvantages. Manual operation of the cable requires that the operator be positioned at a precise location relative to the cables and there is still the inability to ascertain when proper alignment with an aperture has been achieved. Consequently, it would be an improvement to this type of grain distributor to automate the entire lifting, rotating and lowering cycle as well as provide a means of enhancing alignment and indicating over which aperture the inner spout is positioned for the delivery of grain.
The present invention provides each of these improvements as well as other advantages and benefits as will be apparent from the following descriptions. The electromechanical arrangement of the present invention, although quite suitable for use with multi-section inner spouts, is equally applicable to single-piece inner spouts because manual lifting force is not required. The concerns which resulted in the multi-section inner spout design are no longer relevant factors when an automated design is employed.